Surface marker



Te fs', 1930. R. FOSTER 1,7 7,66

AGE MARKER I Filed May 18, 9

fatented Feb. 18, 1939 UNITED STATES tame PATENT ROBERT rosTRR, orCHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR To METAL TRAFFIC MARKER ooR- PORATION, orNEW YORK, N. Y.,

A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK SURFACE MARKER Application filed May 18,

The object of the invention is toprovide improvements in surface markersbroadly, and more specifically in markers employed upon highways,passageways, streets and in factories and industrial'plants, and safetyzones along car lines, to guide motorists and pedestrians at crossings,curves, etc., or to define limits of areas for parking and the like, aswell as to be arranged in the form of figures, symbols and otherpossible indicia intended to convey definite information.

Another object is to provide a marker, comprising a disc-like head,having means adapted to enter and secure the same to any desiredsurface, which will be referred to hereinafteras aroad surface, theunder side of said head resting directly upon and therefore beingdirectly supported by said road surface, while the uppermost or exposedsurface of said head is characterized by a relatively high coefficientof light reflection and refraction due to said head being formed of orcovered by a film or coating of a substantially non-corrosive material,such for instance as nickel,,stainless steel, ascoloy, or Monel metal.

A further object is to provide a structure comprising a disc-like headand means for Securing the same to a road surface in combination with asheet, plate or other type of sheathing, said sheathing comprisingsuitable light-refracting non-corrosive material,

and being secured to said head in any suit able manner, such forinstance as by inwardly turningor crimping the peripheral. edge portionof the sheathing about the correspondin periphery of said head.

till another object is to provide a marker, comprising a disc-like head,having a preferably integral attaching means comprising a body portion,the lower end of which is recessed an'd'the walls of said recess beingnotched at intervals to provide intervening downwardly tapering prongsor spikes, adapted to be driven into aroad surface and in which surfacethe tapered free end portions of said spikes tend to flare outwardly andthereby cooperate in preventing the ready removal of the marker from theroad surface.-

1927. Serial No. 192,178.

Still furthermore, while the present invention is described ascomprising a light-reflecting metallic sheathing, originally separateand then secured to the head of the marker, the scope of the inventionis to be understood as comprising the coverin of the marker head withany suitable meta or alloy by electroplating, by chemical deposit, oramalgamation, by dipping in suitable material, by coating with enamel,or the like, or in fact by marking the head alone, or the entirestructure, of suitable metal or other material by which the marker issufficiently discernible under ordinary conditions in contrast to thesurrounding surface of the highway, or other surface.

With these and other objects in mind, the present invention comprisesfurther details of construction and operation which are fully broughtout in the following description when read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of oneembodiment of the invention; Fig. 2 is a vertical diametrical section ofthe same in operative position in a road or other surface, and Fig. 3 isa bottom plane view of the device as shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the present invention comprises a disc-likehead 5, having a convexly curved upper surface 6 and a lowersubstantially plane surface 7, while from the central portionof saidhead there extends normally downwardly the shank 8 of an attachingmeans, the lower end portion of which is provided with an axiallyinwardly tapering recess or cavity 9, providing a surrounding wall,which in turn is provided with cutout regions 10 between which arepositioned downwardly tapering spike-like projections or prongs 11.

The outer surfaces of these spike projections lie in the plane of andcomprise extensions of the outer surface of the shank 8, while. theinner surfaces of these prongs slant in such manner as to insure theirfree ends being decidedly pointed.

With this construction, it will be readily seen that the marker can bestood upon a road surface and driven by means of a sledge hammer or thelike until the under surface of teristic of the upper surface of thehead 5, a

plate. 12 of suitable material, such as one of those hereinbeforeenumerated, and possibly others, is made to conform to the curvature ofthe surface 6 of said head, While the marginal portion 13 of said plateoriginally extending radially beyond said head is bent, folded, orcrimped reversely therebeneath so as to completely surround theperipheral portion \of the head and thereafter rest beneath andprotected b said head from the usual road traffic whic frequently passesover and indirect contact with the marker.

It is to be understood in considering this invention that I provide asubstantially permanent'light-reflecting marker for directing traflic,indicating boundaries, limits, words or instructions or information,etc. upon the surface of highways and that said light-reflectingcharacter may be provided and its permanency insured in any suitablemanner, such for instance as by forming the entire marker of Monel,ascoloy, or similar lightrefracting, non-corrosive alloy, or othermaterial, by covering the surface of a relatively harder head portion ofthe marker when made of iron, steel or the like with a plate of suitablematerial or by surfacing the exposed portion of said head byelectro-plating, enamellin or otherwise coating the same as hereinbe orereferred to.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protectby Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A marker for guidingtraflic, comprising a head portion, a plate covering the otherwiseexposed surface of said head, the marginal portion of said plate beingreversely turned about the periphery of said head, to unitarily securesaid plate to said head, and

means carried by said head to secure said marker to a given surface.

2. A marker for guiding trafiic, comprising a head portion, a platecovering a portlon of.

said head upon one side thereof and havin its radially outer portionreversely turned about the peri hery of said head to unitarily securesaid p ate to said head, and means carried by said head to secure saidmarker to a given surface.

3. Amarker for uiding traflic, comprising a head portion, a p atecovering a portion of said head upon one side thereof and having itsradially outer portion reversely turned about the periphery of said headto unitarily secure said plate to said head, and a split projectioncarried by said head portion and adapted to enter and expand within thematerial of a given surface upon said marker being driven by a suitabletool in engagement withsaid head portion.

4. A surface marker for vehicle traflic, comprising a head, an integralfastening means associated therewith and adapted to extend into thematerial wherethe marker is positioned, and a sheath of light-reflectingmaterial fastened to said head and having the exposed surface of saidsheath of convex formation, said fastening means comprising asubstantially cylindrical member having independent prongs at one end treof normally extending within the cylindrical limits of the remainingportion of said member, the inner surface of each prong having at leastone tapered surface which engages the material into which the marker isforced to cause said prong to be flexed outwardly from its normaloriginal position.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

ROBERT FOSTER.

